This work reports a novel bifunctional nanocomposite made of infrared-emitting nanophosphors and superparamagnetic nanoparticles, which simultaneously provides heating and temperature sensing at the nanoscale level. Highly luminescent Y3Al5O12:Nd3+ nanophosphors were synthesised by using a sol–gel route and were subsequently mixed with superparamagnetic nanoparticles producing a core–shell structure, which displayed superparamagnetic and fluorescent properties in the same nanostructured system. As a result, this bifunctional nanocomposite showed two essential characteristics: (i) it increased in temperature up to 57 °C upon exposure to an alternating magnetic field of sufficient strength and frequency, and (ii) its temperature could be optically sensed by monitoring the infrared luminescence emitted from the YAG:Nd nanophosphor. Our experiments revealed that the YAG:Nd/Fe3O4@SiO2 nanocomposite possesses excellent luminescence and superparamagnetic properties; both physical properties are driven in a non-contact manner making it appropriate for sensing local heating and temperature of cells, and also suitable to be used in medical treatments with minimal invasiveness.
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